1845.] 



THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECTS JOURNAL. 



119 



REGISTER OF NEW PATENTS. 



(Undtr IhU licail we propose Riving abstracls of the specllications of all the most Ira. 

 portant patent! ai they arc enrolled. If any additional information be required as to any 

 palrnt, the sam« may b« obtained by applying to Mr. LAXTON at the Office of this 

 JOUHNAL.) 



ATMOSPHERIC BAII.WAY. 

 ■lAConaml Joseph D'Aouii.ar S.vmuda, ofSouthwark Iron Works, engineers, 

 fot " iniprovemenis in llic manufacture and arrangement of parts and apparulus 

 for the construction and worhing of atmospheric railways," — Granted April 30 ; 

 Knrolletl October 30, 184-1. See Engraving, Plate IX. 



This patent has several distinet objects: the first is a new method of ex- 

 hausting the main pipe of an atmospheric railway, and is thus described : a 

 large, close, water-vessel, or tank, a, is placed by the side of the line of rails, 

 as shown in the drawing, fig. 4, and this contains two or three times as much 

 water as equals the capacity of one section of the main line of [lipe. The 

 water vessel, a, has a pipe c at its upper side, connecled'to the main-pipe, to 

 exhaust the air through, and the vessel itself being full of water, then, when 

 it is reipiired to form a vacuum, a pipe b, is opened at the under side of the 

 vessel A, and the water descends by its gravity in the pipe n, anil by its velo- 

 city passes the curved lower end of the pipe, and ascends in a jet as high as 

 the partial vacuum in the vessel allows it ; and at different heights are placed 

 troughs, Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4. li, 6, 7, and 8. which catch the water and conduct it 

 into reservoir.s Nos. 1'. 2', 3', 4', 5', G', "', and 8', whence it is pumped back 

 again by a small engine into the vessel a, being also assisted by the partial 

 vacuum remaining in the vessel when the train has passed. The branch pipis 

 connecting the vessel with the main-pipe having valves, which are shut just 

 before the train-piston in the main-pipe reaches the branch, and the water in 

 the upper one or two vessels, when the vacuum is high enough, may bo forced 

 back again inio the vessel A, through a pipe, by the pressure of the atmo- 

 sphere acting on the surface of the water; and the valves in these pipes Ijeing 

 then closed, no air will follow them, and the remainder of the water will he 

 pumped up by the small engine ready to form the vacuum for drawing the 

 next train. 



There seems here considerable misunderstanding of the principles of hy- 

 draulics. In the first place there is no gain but rather a loss of power by 

 allowing the water to ascend from the curved end of the pipe in a jet. It is 

 a fact of common observation that the water of the fountain never rises so 

 high as its source ; whereas the water of conduit-pipes will always ascend to 

 exactly the level of its source. The height to tvhich tlie water of the tank A 

 would rise, if conveyed throughout in a pipe, would be proportional to the 

 exhaustion of the air above a ; when, for instance, that exhaus'.ion had been 

 carried so far that only J of the atmospheric pressure remained, we should 

 have, on the principle of the barometer, the height of the column sustained 

 in the tube ; or taking 33 feet to be the height of water corres[)onding to the 

 atmospheric pressure, the level of the water in the lube would be 22 feet be- 

 low the level of that in the tank. But if the tube were not continued upward 

 to the reservoirs, but the water flowed in a jet, the level which it would 

 reacli would be still lower. The elevation of the reservoir of the great foun- 

 tain at Chatsworth is 381 feet, and the height which the water attains from 

 the fountain is 280 feet. 



Another mistake is the employment of several reservoirs to catch the 

 water. The object of this is stated to be " to i)revent the water descending 

 lower than is absolutely necessary, and thus avoid the cost of pumping it 

 back from a lower level than requisite." Now if this plan were found to 

 produce the eflect proposed, we must conclude that the labour of working a 

 common pump would depend on the depth to which the supply-tube descended 

 into the water. But on the contrary, the effort required for raising the water 

 depends wholly on the height to which it is raised above its source; and 

 would be no greater if the supply tube descended to the bottom of ocean than 

 if it reached only just below the surface. In the case before us therefore the 

 labour would be just the same whether the water were raised from sever..! 

 stages by diO'erent supply-pipes, or from one general reservoir by a pipe 

 reaching to the bottom of it. The most simple and effective plan, and that 

 which perhaps the patentees will adopt when they have ascertained the 

 merits of their present invention would be to pump the water at once from 

 the tank a into a higher reservoir from which tlie water could flow back 

 when the train had passed. 



Another part of the patent is the disposition of the different sections of 

 the main pipe in one continuous tube, and the following arrangement of the 

 order of working the air pump. 



5 4 3 2 1 



Suppose the train starts from 1 ; "when the train starts, No. 1 engine is 

 stiipiied, Niis. 2 and 3, are at work drawing the train along No. 1 section of 

 pipe, and No. 4 engine is started to exhaust No. 3 section of pipe. 'H'hen 

 the train passes the branch-pipe leading to No. 2 engine, the latter is slopped, 

 and No. .'J engine is started to exhaust No. 4 section of pipe, while Nos. 3 

 and 4 engines draw the train along No. 2 section of pipe ; on the train p.assing 

 the branch leading to No. 3 engine, that engine is stopped, and No. 6 engine 



started, Nos. 4 and 5 engines drawing the train along No. 3 section of pipe, 



and so on." 



By this system and a certain arrangement of stop-valves within the main 

 pipe the train can be drawn in either direction. At 2 for instance, two stop- 

 valves worked by hand arc placed in the main-pipe, one a little to the right 

 and the other to the left of the engine, so that the tractive force of the en;jino 

 2 may be exerted either towards 1 nr towards 3 ; if therefore a train lie drawn 

 towards 2 from 1, the right hand valve at 2 is opened and the left hand shut ; 

 if a train be drawn from 3 to 2, the left hand valve is open and the right 

 hand shut. 



Another object of the patent is the gradual enlargement of the bore of the 

 main-pipe as shown in fig. 5, where the steepness of gradients renders addi- 

 tional force necessary for the propulsion of the train. The piston is so ar- 

 ranged as to be capable of expanding to fill the enlarged pipe, and again 

 contracting when the pipe is reduced to its usual diameter. The method by 

 which this piston is to be constructed is not very clearly expressed in the 

 specification, but the main feature of the plan seems to be that the expanding 

 piston shall be formed of a bag of leather or other flexible materials, which 

 is to be distended by a lever, see fig. 6, controlled by the conductor of the 

 train. 



There are other minor improvements specified, but the above are the prin- 

 cipal. 



DRAIN PIPES AND TILES. 



\Viu.iAM FoKn, of Lawn End, South Lambeth, Surrey, Drain Tile Maker, 

 for " improvements in the manufacture of lubes for draining land and for other 

 purposes, and in drain iWi's.''— Granted July 30, 1844 ; Enrolled January 30, 

 18«. 



The objects of the invention are improvements in the machinery for mak- 

 ing drain pipes and tiles, and a mode of forming sockets on the pipes. The 

 machine is portable and complete within itself, and its movement is horizontal, 

 a piston working wiihin a clay chamber being pressed forward to force the 

 clay through the moulding orifice, and the pipe or tile thus formed cut to 

 the required length by a simple operation. The improvements consist of a 

 fixed chamber, that can be filled with clay very expeditiously, having a 

 hinged cover and a lever apparatus, which is released from a spr.ng c itch 

 by a tappit on the piston rod. that acts the instant all the clay is discharged 

 from the chamber, throws the driving pinion out of gear, and prevents injury 

 to the working parts of the machine. 



The cylinder for forming sockets on the pipes is parted in the centre longi- 

 tudinally, and hinged at one end is a stop, and at the other a mould of the 

 external form of the socket, and the pipe being placed wiihin, with its end 

 against the stop and the cylinder closed ; a mandrill, at one end of which is a 

 mould of the internal form of the socket is passed through it, and an excess of 

 length of the pipe is driven into the socket mould, and a socket is thus formed 

 so accurately, the inventor states, as to render the pipe fit for many other 

 purposes besides draining. 



BROOM PAPER. 



JIosES Pool*, of Lincoln's Inn, Middlesex, for "Improvements in the numu- 

 fatlurc o/;)arer."— Granted July 10, 1814 ; Enrolled Jan. 1845. (A communi- 

 cation from a foreigner. J 



The improvements consi^t in the employment of the broom plant, reduced 

 to a pulpy state, for making paper, in the following manner. The common 

 broom is the one most preferred by the inventor, it may he used either green 

 or dry, by being first steeped in water or not ; the branches of the broom are 

 crushed or bruised ; during this process the plant should be immersed eiiher 

 in hot or cold water and continually changed ; the woody parts are then se- 

 parated from the filamentous ]iarts — the former are again ground before they 

 are mixed with the latter — the crushing is continued until the water flows 

 away without any colour. Afterwards the pulp is submitted to great pres- 

 sure to force out the water, and then submitted to a lessuve of about 101b. of 

 lime and 2 lb. of soda to 2001b. of pulp. It is next put into a w;tshing mill 

 to have the pulp untwisted and thoroughly washed, and at the same time all 

 the woody particles that may float on the surface removed. The pulp is again 

 pressed and divided into small parcels for the purpose of bleaching, and is 

 exposed to the action of chlorine, either in vapour or in a liquid state, for 

 about 25 minutes ; } lb. of muriatic acid is used for every 200 lb. of pulp. The 

 pulp after it has rested fur li hours is ready to be made into paper. 



The claim is for the preparation and employment of a pulpy matter ob- 

 tained from the broom plant to the manufacture of paper. 



SMOKE COMBUSTION. 



M'lM.iAii Bf.dington, Junior, of Birmingham, "for improvements in the 



construction of furnaces."— Gnnled i\ji\y 10, 1844; Enrolled January 10, 1845. 



The objects of this invention are the more perfect comljustion of fuel and 



the prevention of a great discharge of smoke. It is proposed th.it the gases 



10* 



